Centro

Much of historical Rio is concentrated in Centro, with pockets of interest, too, in the neighbouring Saúde and Lapa quarters of the city. You’ll find you can tour the centre fairly easily on foot, but bear in mind that lots of the old historical squares, streets and buildings disappeared in the twentieth century under a torrent of redevelopment, and fighting your way through the traffic – the reason many of the streets were widened in the first place – can be quite a daunting prospect.